The new variety originated as a chance discover by the inventor, Luen Miller. The variety was discovered as a naturally occurring branch mutation on a single plant of Leucadendron salignum x laureolum ‘Ebony’ U.S. Plant Pat. No. 23,258. The new variety was discovered during June of 2011 at a homeowner garden in Los Gatos, Calif.
After selecting and isolating the new cultivar, asexual reproduction of the new cultivar ‘WILD THING’ was first performed at a commercial nursery in Royal Oaks, Calif. in July of 2013. Softwood vegetative terminal cuttings were used for propagation. The inventor continued confidential, controlled evaluation and propagation of ‘WILD THING’, to establish a stable clone, with the most variegated foliage coloration. ‘WILD THING’ has since produced three generations and has shown that the unique features of this cultivar are stable and reproduced true to type. Typical asexual reproduction of the new variety is by softwood vegetative cuttings.